"Hot spots is an EIU research programme, commissioned by Citigroup, which ranks the competitiveness of 120 of the world’s major cities. The research drew on two main initiatives: • A unique Index that compares 120 of the world’s major urban agglomerations across eight distinct categories of competitiveness and 31 individual indicators. These cities collectively represent about 29% of the global economy, with a combined GDP of US$20.2tr. A detailed note on definitions and methodology is provided in the appendix. • Hot spot conducted in-depth interviews with ten city experts, mayors and corporate executives, to get their insights on city competitiveness."